Thursday, August 26, 2010

What I Read - Sleeper: Season Two #3

#3 The Manipulations - the story continues to develop and continues to mess with my head. Its messing with my head because like Carver, the main character who doubles as narrator, I'm trying to make sense of it all. Does anyone really have Carver's best interests at heart? I doubt it, certainly not Tao or Lynch. They're both using him for their own purposes. What about Miss Misery or Veronica? Maybe, at this point I'm more likely to believe that one of them does than either Tao or Lynch but that's only because the latter two are such SOBs.

I don't mean to beat a dead horse but I'm still not crazy about the art. That said, there are a few panels and pages where it looks more cartoony, more like the art in Season One than what I got in the first two chapters of Season Two. Hopefully that's an indication that his style is shifting back to something more pleasing to my eyes and brain.

Sleeper: Season Two by Ed Brubaker and Sean Philips

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Art Appreciation: Comic Twart - Lone Wolf & Cub

I've been following the Comic Twart blog for a few months now. I think its awesome. Each week one of the many artists who contributes to this blog posts picks a subject. For one week all the posts are sketches and drawings of that subject. Subjects are usually comicbook related, everything from superheroes to. Characters from pulp magazines.

This past week's subject, Lone Wolf & Cub, has by far been my favorite so far. The drawings posted have been truly inspired works of art. Usually there's one or two that stand out. I do my best to analyze them and leave comments indicating what I like about them. I left a lot more comments than usual this week.

Friday, August 20, 2010

What I Read - Sleeper: Season Two #2

#2: Faith, Hope & Charity - I'm still not wowed by the artwork. It seems uneven and unlike what I remember from Season One. Its probably unfair of me (on some level) to judge Philips art work by comparing it to the previous season (even though he drew that one too) but that's what I'm doing.

The story hasn't completely won me over yet but I am intrigued. Brubaker and Philps are slowly putting the pieces together. If it is anything like Season One then it won't be be until at least the halfway point before things start to make sense and seem less confusing.

All three of the primary male characters (Carver, Tao, Lynch) are fascinating in their own right. Its a real mindfuck trying to get into their heads and figure how and why they approach things the way they do. They are definitely complex characters, which probably is the reason that they are so hard to get a bead on. Brubaker has really done a great job with these three, both in creating them and in the way he slowly reveals them one layer at a time.

Sleeper: Season Two by Ed Brubaker and Sean Philips

Thursday, August 19, 2010

What I Bought - Aug 14 & 15, 2010

On Saturday I went to Barbarian. I browsed for a while. I also spent a little bit of time chatting with one of the owners about Scott Pilgrim and manga. In the end I only bought the latest volumes of the three manga series that I am currently reading:

- 20th Century Boys v9
- Ikigami v6
- Ōoku v4

I still have yet to read the previous volume of each of these series but I'm more or less committed to them. More importantly, I have yet to be seriously disappointed by them.

On Sunday I went to a comic book show near Tysons Corner. I wasn't looking to spend a lot of money. I was hoping to find some inexpensive DC comics from the mid to late 1970s. I came home with 9 comics, 8 of which fall into that category. I paid $3 admission and $10 for the comics.

70s DC Comics
- Aquaman # 57
- Brave and the Bold # 122, 133, 162
- Men of War # 19, 21
- Ragman # 3
- Unexpected # 180

Other
- Uncanny X-Men and New Teen Titans #1

Thursday, August 12, 2010

What I Read - Sleeper: Season Two #1

#1: The Messenger - I dunno how long of a creative break there was between the two seasons of this story but there seems to be a subtle lack of consistency in the artwork. I haven't reread it recently but I remember Philips artwork as more cartoony in season one. It took me a while to get used to his style, which is a little odd since I tend to like more cartoony artwork, but toward the end I was really diggin' it. Now it seems as if he has gone and switched things up and seems to be trying a more realistic approach.

Storywise I think it is kind of tough to judge Season Two just yet. This is the opening chapter of a twelve part story, or part thirteen of a twenty-four parter. It took me a while to get a feel for Brubaker and Philips mode of storytelling in Season One. It kept me guessing right up until the very end. I can definitely see them setting things up but given that I don't know what is coming I'm not sure what to say about the story and characters just yet.

Sleeper: Season Two by Ed Brubaker and Sean Philips

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

What I Bought - Aug 1, 2010

I went to the Capicon comic book show at the Dunn Loring Volunteer Fire Department. I've got plenty to read at home so I didn't plan on spending very much. I spent $2 on admission, $9 on comics, and $28 on a 2-day pass to the Baltimore Comicon.

Sgt Rock #325, 338 - I bought these primarily for the Joe Kubert covers and the Daily Planet feature pages.

Marvel Team-Up # 134 - written by Bill Manto and drawn by Ron Frenz this issue co-stars Spiderman and Jack of Hearts and is the prologue to the Jack of Hearts 4-issue limited series from 1984.

Superman: Kryptonite - written by Darwyn Cooke and drawn by Tim Sale; I've been wanting to read this ever since I first saw the preview art a few years ago.